Joe Schmidt has been named as the Phillips Irish Sports Manager of the Year, beating off as strong an opposition as might ever have been assembled in Irish sport.
Paul McGinley’s becoming the first Irishman to lead a Ryder Cup team to victory; Philip Doyle’s taking the Irish Women’s Rugby team to previously unimagined heights in France; Pete Taylor’s handling of his daughters record sixth European and fifth World title during the year and Aidan O’Brien entering history as the only man to train three consecutive Epsom Derby winners would all have been worthy and acclaimed winners.
It was though Schmidt’s winning of the RBS 6 Nations and his timely success in the Guinness Autumn Series that sealed the award.
The winner is adjudged by a panel of media and doubtless some of the success can be attributed to Schmidt’s own charm and ease in dealing with the pressures of telling the story of a game to a pack of hungry media in the aftermath of a triumph or defeat.
Image credit: Sportsfile / IRFU
